2011 Hedge Fund Rising Stars: GLG’s J. Jason Mitchell

J. Jason Mitchell
GLG Partners

In the close-knit world of socially responsible investing, J. Jason Mitchell is fast becoming something of a celebrity. Mitchell, 38, oversees the sustainable-investment strategies at London-based hedge fund firm GLG Partners and runs the GLG Global Sustainability Fund. He believes that so-called ESG factors — matters of environmental impact, social concerns and corporate governance — should not merely be branded as ethical investing but looked at as a profitable investment approach irrespective of morality. Mitchell joined GLG in April of last year; it was his second tour of duty at the firm.

Previously, he had run GLG’s global telecommunications and media investment portfolio. But he left in 2008 to help save the world. He spent two years as COO of Hydrotech International, a water technology and solutions provider for developing countries, working on projects in sub-Saharan nations. But, frustrated by the slow progress of change, he began to feel he could achieve more back in his old world. So when GLG founder Pierre Lagrange tapped him to take over and reboot the firm’s sustainable-investing initiative, Mitchell was ready. A year later his approach — focusing on sustainable economic trends, not moral absolutes — is gaining results and converts.